Reviews of Diskit Gompa • 19

While traveling back to leh from Nubra we visited Diksit monastery which which happens to be the oldest and largest Buddhist monastery of the Nubra Valley in Ladakh and a start attraction because of its 100 foot high Maitreya Buddha statue.

Day 6 – 23-07-2017 Khalsar -&gt; Hunder -&gt; Diskit -&gt; LehPositive news arrived in early morning that we can go for the camel ride. So we started at 8 am . left from hunder for the double hump camel ride.Good time spent in the miniature of desert surrounded by the huge snowy Mountain ranges, literally, creation only of its kind .After enjoying the camel ride, we went to monastery at diskit . It is located on of the hill top from where most of the Nubra Valley can beviewed.Left for Leh fromThe diskit Monastery. On the way, we reached base village – Khardung of the Khardung pass . Had lunch over there. The cook-cum-owner is an ex-army officer and hisbrother has completed PhD in Literature. They hail from Delhi. We reached Khardung la, clicked few wonderful scenes and eventually left for Leh. Reached leh in theevening post sunset. Left for shopping and then dinner followed by sleep ZzzzzZZzzzz

Day 4 - Diskit MonasteryAfter checking out, we visited the Diskit Monastery, its the oldest and second largest Buddhist monastery in the Nubra Valley of Ladakh.It is situated on the hill, just above the flood plains of the Shyok River. It has a gigantic statue of Maitreya Buddha which is absolutely stunning. To climb few steps to reach the monastery is absolutely tiring due to height and lack of oxygen but once you reach, it would give an absolute sense of spirituality and peace of mind. The monastery also provides breath taking panaromic view of splashes of greenery,sand dunes,mountains and Shyok River.After spending some time at the monastery we left for Leh, on the way back we again took a stop at Khardungla to enjoy the moment of being at the highest peak with a wild imaginations of unknown kingdoms being run in the mountains, enjoying the snow before we a bid an adieu. After reaching Leh, we visited Leh Bazaar in the eveing and ended the day with bags full of beautifully handcrafted local ladhaki stuff.

We saw the changing vistas of Nubra Valley. Few kms into the road leading to Diskit, the scenery changes from arid desert to a small oasis. The roads were almost deserted. It felt as we are the only people left in the world. So peaceful. So calm. We stopped at Diskit Gompa. The main attraction of the Gompa is the main Deity, which holds in its hand the mummified human forearm and head, which is believed to be of a Mongol warrior. Perched on top of a hill overlooking town of Diskit, it provides some breathtaking panoramic views.

The Diskit Gompa, Nubra Valley's oldest and largest monastery should be an integral part of your Leh Ladakh Road Trip. It is also home to a gigantic statue of Maitreya Buddha which is absolutely stunning.

Later in the afternoon, visit the Diskit Monastery and the giant statue of Maitreya Buddha which is the tallest Buddha statue in Ladakh. Later, visit the white sand dunes at Hunder where you can enjoy the Double Humped Bactrian camel ride (ride on direct payment basis). Overnight in Nubra Valley. (B, L, D)You can stay at-Economy/Standard/Deluxe-&nbsp;Deluxe Camp / Huts / Cottages Or Similar

Next morning, we visited the Diskit Monastry. It is a long walk uphill, I will suggest hitchike or ride till the vehicles are allowed and then start walking. After your prayers, visit the tea room which offers tea to all the visitors. This place encourages you to be silent and will bring you sense of peace. It did to me.

This monastery is noted for its resemblance to the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibetgompa in central Ladakh.A 15 metres (49 ft) high statue of Maitreya, the largest such statue in Ladakh, covering two storeys of the building is deified in the monastery.

Diskit Monastery is the oldest and largest Buddhist monastery of Nubra Valley. It belongs to the Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) sect of TIbetan Buddhism. it was founded by Changzem Tserab Zangpo, a disciple of Tsong Khapa, founder of Gelugpa, in the 14th century. It is a sub-gompa of the Thikse gompa. There is a 106ft statue of Maitreya Buddha near the monastery.

On Day 3 in Ladakh, we started our return journey to Leh. Our first stop in the morning was at the Diskit Gompa. We stopped here for a few minutes only and enjoyed the panoramic views from this hill shrine.

First town in the Nubra valley along the Shyok river. 32 meter statue of Maitreya Buddha near Diskit Monastery facing down the Shyok River towards Pakistan is the highlight of this city. Culturally it is the last point where Buddhist traces can be found.

We first visited the Diskit monastery which had a large statue of Buddha recently built and it looked lovely in the monsoon setting. Then we had a homestay at my driver Zigmit’s home in Hunder village. There we learnt that Hunder was called Sonetar and which meant ‘the first one’. They told us that this was believed to be the first village which was habituated in this part. His mother made a local dish called skew at our request.
The next day morning we had a stroll in the village which was so lovely with streams running everywhere and huge mountains around. People had grown wheat and mustard. The colours of yellow and green blended so well. For breakfast Zigmit’s mother made ‘Khumani roti’ and we set off for our next destination of Hunder camel safari and left the beautiful Hunder village. Most of the local people were Buddhists with a minor portion of Muslims as well. People here looked very peace loving and soft spoken. Next we had a lovely time in sand among the camels and set off our journey back to Leh town with our driver Zigmit.

The monastery was founded by Changzem Tserab Zangpo, a disciple of Tsong Khapa, founder of Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) sect of Tibetan Buddhism. This is the oldest and the second largest Buddhist monastery in Ladakh after Thiksey monastery. The monastery, with the support of ‘Tibet Support Group’, runs a school for the Tibetan children in the region.